Policy Observatory
On 19 February 2015, the Danish government presented a 12-point plan for new anti-terror initiatives in response to the Charlie Hebdo attack in Paris and the shooting incident in Copenhagen on 14 February. This will become the third major anti-terror package since 2001 to be presented to the Danish Parliament.
The focus of the plan is on surveillance measures in Denmark and abroad through increased budgets, new IT-systems, and new powers for the intelligence services, the Danish Defence Intelligence Services (DDIS) and the Danish Security and Intelligence Service (PET), which is part of the Danish police.
The most controversial element is targeted surveillance and eavesdropping of communications of Danish citizens abroad. This will be done by DDIS without a court order.
On 12 January 2017, the Danish Ministry of Justice presented a draft law on website blocking for public consultation. Despite the official focus on online extremism and radicalisation, the draft law takes a very broad view on website blocking. The proposed new section in the Administration of Justice Act provides that a website can be blocked if there is reason to assume that a violation of the Danish penal code takes place on the website. Any violation of the penal code, including a new very broad anti-harassment provision for public employees in Section 119a which goes considerably beyond insult and defamation, can be grounds for blocking.
A draft law to amend the data protection provisions of the law on the oversight of the Danish Security and Intelligence Service (PET) was submitted for public consultation in September 2016. In their consultation responses, several NGOs including EDRi member IT-Pol Denmark, as well as the Danish Intelligence Oversight Board (TET) criticised the proposal.
On 11 July 2017, the Dutch Senate passed the bill for the new Intelligence and Security Services Act. With the Senate vote, a years-long political battle has come to an end: the secret services have been given dragnet surveillance powers.
The annual report from the Danish Intelligence Oversight Board (TET) was published on 7 July 2017. Under Danish law, TET is tasked with overseeing the data collection and data processing practices of the Danish Security and Intelligence Service (PET) and the Danish Defence and Intelligence Service (DDIS). Both intelligence services operate mostly outside European Union (EU) law because of the national security exemption in the EU Treaties.
Since mid 2016, Denmark has a nationwide automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) system with stationary cameras at 24 locations and mobile cameras mounted on 48 police cars. The ANPR system is currently being integrated with POL-INTEL, the new Danish system for intelligence-led policing (predictive policing), which is supplied by Palantir Technologies. Expansion of the ANPR system with more cameras can be expected in the coming years.